What is Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)?
In addition to maintaining a minimum 2.0 cumulative GPA, students must make satisfactory academic progress by earning at least 67% of the hours they attempt. Attempted hours include credits from courses you took and completed at Appalachian (regardless of the grade earned), courses from which you withdrew or dropped after the drop/add period (the first five days of the semester), courses you repeated at Appalachian and developmental courses (MAT 0010). Students who fail to achieve this ratio will receive an academic progress warning notice at the end of the semester.
What happens if I drop below 12 hours?
- you lose your full-time student status
- your financial aid could be impacted (Contact the Office of Student Financial Aid if you receive financial aid.)
- your on-campus housing could be impacted (Contact University Housing if you live on campus.)
If you decide to drop a class, you may want to consider registering for a last-half of term course(s) in order to stay a full-time student. Please discuss this with your advisor.
What is an Academic Progress Warning?
Receiving an Academic Progress Warning is not the same thing as being placed on Academic Probation (though it is possible to receive an Academic Progress Warning and be on Academic Probation at the same time). The purpose of the warning is to inform students that continued failure to meet the expected Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) ratio could have future consequences in terms of their GPA, time to degree, and financial aid eligibility. For more information on the policy, review the scenarios summarized below as well as the FAQ's from the Registrar's Office.
We have also created several documents that may further clarify this policy.
- Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)/Academic Progress Warning - an overview (PDF)
- SAP/Academic Progress Warning Scenarios:
- Student makes Dean's List but still receives "academic progress warning." (PDF)
- Student makes Chancellor's List but still receives "academic progress warning." (PDF)
- Student is in good academic standing but still receives "academic progress warning." (PDF)
- Student is on academic probation but does not receive "academic progress warning." (PDF)